Washington, D.C. - Today, the Capital Area Immigrants’
Rights Coalition (CAIR Coalition) and the American Immigration Lawyers
Association (AILA) filed a federal lawsuit challenging the decisionmaking
process used by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in promulgating new regulations
that fundamentally restructured the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), in ways
that are likely to dramatically curtail meaningful appellate review of tens of
thousands of immigration decisions each year.

According to the complaint, which was filed in the United States District
Court for the District of Columbia, the BIA’s decisions “literally can mean the
difference between life and death, family unity or family separation” for
affected individuals. But the DOJ promulgated these regulations “without
carefully analyzing the implications of its actions and giving serious attention
to the concerns expressed by the public in rulemaking proceedings,” the
complaint charges. This action was arbitrary and capricious and violated
the DOJ’s obligations of reasoned decisionmaking, under the federal
Administrative Procedure Act that governs agency rulemaking.

The BIA is the highest administrative body within the Department of Justice
for interpreting and applying U.S. immigration laws. It has the final
responsibility for deciding appeals from decisions of Immigration Judges and
officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The BIA is
frequently the final authority to consider appeals raising compelling issues,
such as claims for relief from persecution or torture in the immigrants’ home
countries, or the interests of long-term permanent residents in remaining with
their families in the United States rather than being deported to countries
where they have few if any ties. The BIA’s rulings also reverberate far beyond
its own docket, because they provide precedent and guidance to lower level
decisionmakers considering over 250,000 immigration cases each year.

The new regulations, which became final on September 25, 2002, encourage the
quick disposal of appeals through the widespread use of summary dispositions,
without written opinions, by single BIA Board Members in place of the BIA’s
traditional three-Member panels. Through this change, the DOJ intends the
BIA to dispose of some 57,000 backlogged cases in just six months, while keeping
current with newly filed appeals. This would require adjudications of
appeals at an average rate of just 15 minutes per case. The performance of
individual Board Members will be evaluated based on the speed of their
dispositions. And at the end of the six-month period (i.e., in late March
2003), the size of the BIA Board will be slashed almost in half. Attorney
General John Ashcroft will have complete discretion to decide which Members to
retain and which to let go.

The Complaint charges that these dramatic changes to BIA structure and
procedures were implemented without appropriate consideration for the views of
the interested public, including nongovernmental organizations like the CAIR
Coalition and AILA that filed comments on the regulatory proposal before it was
finalized. Many commentators had urged the DOJ to reconsider the proposal,
which they felt would sacrifice quality of appellate review in the quest for
quantity, and would create tremendous pressure on BIA Board Members to decide
cases summarily and in ways perceived to be consistent with the preferences of
the current Administration. The commentators had urged DOJ to consider
alternate proposals that would not undermine the legal duty of Board Members to
“exercise their independent judgment and discretion.”

Despite these comments, DOJ pressed forward with its dramatic restructuring
plan. In the process, the complaint charges, the DOJ failed to give proper
consideration and emphasis to legitimate concerns about the impact of its
regulations. It also failed to articulate a reasoned basis for its own
decisionmaking, in violation of federal law.

The lawsuit seeks a court order invalidating the final BIA restructuring
rules, along with certain internal BIA memoranda issued in spring of 2002 while
the restructuring regulations were pending, but without similar opportunity for
public notice and comment. .

The Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition is a not-for-profit corporation
based in Washington, D.C. The CAIR Coalition seeks to advance the human
and civil rights of immigrants and refugees, to foster an environment of
positive human and community relations in our society, and to work for a fair
and humane immigration policy. To this end, the CAIR Coalition visits
indigent asylum seekers and other immigrants in jails and seeks to assist them
in their immigration proceedings, including by enlisting the assistance of pro
bono attorneys to represent them.

The American Immigration Lawyers Association is also a not-for-profit
corporation based in Washington, D.C. AILA is a national association of
attorneys and law professor practicing and teaching in the field of immigration
and nationality law. AILA’s members represent individuals at all stages of
immigration proceedings. AILA also advocates for fair and reasonable
immigration law and policy.

Questions about this release or the organizations involved should by directed
to Ms. Debi Sanders at the CAIR Coalition, (202) 756-2770, or Jeanne Butterfield
at the American Immigration Lawyers Association, (202) 216-2400.